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Paid search CTR on mobile increased by 78% in 2013: stats

In the UK, the share of clicks coming through mobile search ads almost doubled in 2013, from 24% in January to 43% in December.

According to the latest research from Marin Software, mobile devices will account for 50% of all paid-search clicks globally by December 2015.

The UK is ahead of the rest of Europe, where mobile and tablets only accounted for 20% of paid search clicks in 2013.

That being said, advertisers in Europe increased their investment in mobile paid search by 109% in 2013, while UK advertisers increased their mobile paid search spend from 22% to 35%.

In another report from TNS, 32% of UK consumers make purchases on a smartphone, it’s clear that the UK has the highest percentage of people who make a monthly purchase on their smartphones, with 32%. This is compared to just 8% in France, 15% in Germany and 19% in Sweden.

Advertisers are increasingly keen to reach mobile users, as this is quickly becoming a key method by which shoppers research products online. UK advertisers benefited from higher click-through rates (CTRs) of 5.71% compared to 3.83% for the rest of Europe.

Smartphone conversion rates however are at an average of 2.8%, currently below tablets (4.6%) and desktop (6.1%). Users may well be researching on the handy smartphone that’s at an arm’s reach at all times of the day but more than 40% of online adults are multi-device users, who will abandon the smartphone for a larger display as soon as it comes to purchase.

Cost-per-click (CPC) has increased, with average CPCs on smartphones rising 26% to £0.19 and tablets rising 11% to an average of £0.31.

CPC on mobile devices increased at a much higher rate than cost per click on the desktop during 2013. In some regions, tablet CPCs have surpassed desktop CPCs.

The cost of mobile advertising is rising due to its popularity and effectiveness. Although as CTRs are improving globally, conversions for smartphones aren’t going to rise in line until ecommerce fully adopts mobile optimisation or responsive design as the key method for improving the ease and simplicity of purchasing goods via mobile.

With cross-border ecommerce booming, it’s not surprising that more businesses are launching international websites. Britain generates the biggest online trade surplus in the world, according to research by OC&C.

The value of exports is $1bn more than imports, putting it ahead of the United States and Germany.

It’s not just major retailers such as ASOS and Marks & Spencer that are contributing to this trend. A survey by Royal Mail found six in 10 small and medium-sized businesses are looking to boost their international sales in 2014.

Search advertising has come to dominate performance marketing over the last decade, with advertisers seeing amazing returns from targeting messages at consumers based on their intent.

If a consumer is searching for ‘best golf clubs’ it’s a pretty safe assumption that they’re in purchasing mode and likely to be interested in an advert promoting golf clubs.

But, any search marketer will tell you that one of its weaknesses is that you have to use a degree of guesswork when it comes to audience characteristics.

In the example above, if you knew the consumer was a female then your advertising creative would be far more powerful if it promoted just clubs for ladies. The trouble with search is that unless someone is very specific in their search term, you’re forced to make assumptions.

We’re in the land of startups this week, spending a day in the life of Ann-Marie Rossiter, Head of Marketing at events marketplace HeadBox. As usual, we’ll be finding out what it takes to succeed in this role, from skills and tools to the daily routine. If you’d like to appear in this feature, get […]